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Churches
Churches, also known as religions, are organizations of Ib that are founded around a transcendental core principle, typically being dedicated to enacting the celestial will of one or more gods on Aum. Major Churches While there are countless local churches that are devoted to the service of a local deity or spirit, there are several Major Churches that span across nations and whose members can number in the millions or even billions depending on the era. Church of Light The Church of Light is a church dedicated to the worship of Holith and is favored by Lumancers. The core tenant of the church is compassion and adherents of the church believe that it is their duty to help improve the lives of society's most vulnerable members. Its adherents hold that all intelligent life is precious and generally condemn violence except in cases of immediate defense of life. The Church of Light is one of three Core Churches of The Empire; however, it frequently finds itself coming in conflict with the Imperial Authority due to its anti-war beliefs. Church of Flame The Church of Flame is a church dedicated to the worship of Afreon and is favored by Pyromancers. Its adherents hold that living a passionate life in which one strives to be their most radiant self is the greatest good for every Ib, and accept that such a drive will naturally lead to conflict. The Church of Flame is one of the Core Churches of The Empire, but there are times when it challenges Imperial Authority when it feels that over-abundant and stringent laws obstruct its members' attempts at independently deciding how it is they should be living their lives of blazing glory. Church of The Holy Sun The Church of the Holy Sun is an elitist church that combines many aspects of both the Church of Flame and the Church of Light. It merges passion and compassion as its core philosophies; however, it also has an aspect of exclusivity and to it and requires its members to prove themselves as worthy through regular Tests of Faith, essentially requiring them to complete small quests on a regular basis. The Church of the Holy Sun is the favored Core Church of the Imperial Authority, but its stricter barriers both of entry and continued membership make it less appealing to common citizens. Church of the Guardian Saints The Church of the Guardian Saints is a church devoted to the worship of Holith, Lawquin, and Erath, the "Guardian Lords" as well as their most blessed adherents whom they deem the Guardian Saints. While over the years they have become increasingly accepting of both Afreon and Aerad despite their status as "Betrayer Lords," they are still quite wary of their adherents. The Church of the Guardian Saints is also the least tolerant of all churches to users of the dark element and it holds all shadowmancers as well as those who so much as express even an iota of respect for Damdran in contempt. The Healing Sect The Healing Sect is a church that schismed off from both the Church of Light and the Church of the Guardian Saints. Its adherents devote themselves to lives of service through healing the sick, wounded, and weary as well as mending the world itself when the need arises. The Sect favors true pacifism and condemns violence in all its forms, even in cases of self-defense and the defense of the innocent. Church of Knowledge The Church of Knowledge is a community of scientists, scholars, and enthusiasts who believe that the pursuit and circulation of knowledge is the highest purpose of Ib. Moreover, they believe that the advancement of technology is the greatest instrument of improving Ib lives and they view each Ib as a cog in a universal machine that is constantly seeking to enhance to a higher state of being. The Great Faith The Great Faith is a religion centered around the worship of a sole god, a creator of all that there is an absolute being, similar to many conceptions of the Great Smith. The core of the Great Faith is in its traditions, rituals, and codes, all of which attempt to serve to unite and morally elevate its members while simultaneously distinguishing and often alienating them from the rest of society. Church of the Cleansing Flame The Church of the Cleansing Flame is a religion that is vehemently opposed to the very existence of the undead as well as an afront to nature such as mutants and extraterrestrial life. They view fire as a means for cleansing impurities from the world, consuming them entirely and releasing holy light in through their eradication. Church of the Ebon Flame The Church of the Ebon Flame is a religion associated with Hellfire that embraces the principles of power, honor, and purity. While the legality of worship varies between imperial provinces due to its aspect of Darkness and its association with Orc culture, its fierce stance against demonic influence has allowed the Ebon Flame to earn a degree of toleration among the Imperial Authority. Quietus Cult The Quietus Cult is a hodgepodge religion consisting of a variety of Doomsday preppers who have believed that the end has been nigh for several millenia. While the premise behind the Quietus Cult is quite morbid and most of its followers fall into the kind of desperation and despair that drives men to commit wicked acts of madness or become corrupted by the most depraved forms of debauchery, a number of the cult's factions have adopted more positive doctrines which proclaim that adherents should devote every fleeting moment of their ephemeral existences to acting towards the good of their fellow man. Cult of the Dead The Cult of the Dead is a religion that reveres the immortal existence of the living dead. Mortal followers of the religion seek to "ascend" beyond their mortal limits through conversion by their undead masters, and undead members seek to protect their continued existence by any means available to them. The preservation of one's own existence is the ultimate principle of the Cult, and, as such, veneration of one's elders is core to the Cult's internal power structure. The Infernal Truth The Infernal Truth is a religion centered around the servitude of demons. Its adherents believe that the power of demons is absolute and sin will one day come to rule all of Aum. While some members of the Infernal Truth wish to harness demonic power to serve their own purposes, most accept that they are damned and doomed and pray only that their demonic overlords will extinguish their souls painlessly instead of subjecting them to an immortal existence of eternal torment. The Way The Way is a broad categorization fo religions that emphasize seeking a "harmonious existence." While some branches instruct that such an existence can only be achieved through strict adherence to daily rituals, others profess that the path to enlightenment is paved through discipline and adherence to certain virtues such as compassion, frugality, and humility. Deiism Deiism is a religion based on the worship and reverence of Deities. Universalism Universalism is a religion based on the worship of all divine beings in a state of enamor with existence. Whether it be the grandiose gods themselves or the humble creatures of the natural world, universalists believe that all beings deserve respect. Egoism Egoism is a religion centered around the worship of oneself, elevating the small spark of divinity that is an individual's conscious soul to a supreme existence in its own right. Egoists believe that they can achieve apotheosis through enhancing their personal power and prestige and through enforcing their underlings to revere them as their lord. In turn, those who serve powerful egoists believe that they can improve their chance of achieving apotheosis of their own through being bestowed the gifts of divine strength from their lord. Naturalism Naturalism is a religion based around the preservation of the natural world and a return to Ib living in "the state of nature," an existence that is in harmony with the wilderness. From a naturalist perspective, most technology is detrimental to the proper state of being that an Ib should seek, though many fundamental and primitive technologies are still seen as perfectly acceptable to use. As one may expect, because the core philosophy of naturalism is so vehemently antithetical to many of the principles of metropolitan life, many naturalists choose to live in communes far away from civilization. Atheism Atheism is a broad categorization of philosophies centered around a rejection of divine beings. In eras when the presence of gods is an undeniable fact of everyday life, this manifests as a belief that Ib should seek to cast away the shackles of divine servitude and live independently of their celestial overlords. In eras where the actions of gods seem like naught by distant memories, atheists proclaim that the gods are dead and that those who still worship them are fools crowding around the last embers of a dying flame. The Church of Darkness The Church of Darkness is a church dedicated to the worship of Damdran. While the worship of Damdran is illegal in The Empire, the church has an international presence and a number of Imperial Citizens who practice the religion in the shadows, proselytizing through back-alley whispers. The Church of Darkness extols the virtues of setting specific goals and following through on them, further emphasizing the pursuit of willed action in and of itself, regardless of what the final results may be. The Church of Air The Church of Air is a church dedicated to the worship of Aerad. The core tenant of the church is to embrace one's own sense of whimsy. Members are encouraged to make frequent pilgrimages to scenic vistas and to gleefully join one another in song. Critics outside the church claim that it lacks the sense of solemnity a "proper" religion requires and mock its members as idle revelers; however, members of the Church itself dismiss such critics as bores. The Church of Water The Church of Water is a church dedicated to the worship of Lawquin. The Church is notable in its lack of core tenants with members believing that each individual must realize what the faith means to them and bring their own interpretation into harmony with the beliefs of their local community. The Church of Earth The Church of Earth is a church dedicated to the worship of Erath. While membership of the church is open to all, the Church of Earth is notable in that its leadership is strictly tied to established familial hierarchies and the veneration of ancestral members. The church holds the preservation of one's past and famil history to be the most vital task for every individual and as such require its faithful to be dutiful record keepers and historians. Celestial Vesper The Celestial Vesper is a church dedicated to the worship of angels and the pursuit of virtue. Members seek to cleanse the world of sin, starting with themselves and working outward into their communities. They are known for their association with chimes and their daily evening prayers. Agnosticism Agnosticism is a broad classification for a lack of a proper church, whether it be due to being uncertain that gods exist in eras when their influence is weak, due to being uncertain of which gods one should worship and therefore not devoting oneself to anything in particular, or due in part to the incomprehensible existential dread that afflicts many Ib, causing them to doubt the existence of anything including themselves. Minor Churches Temple of Blades The Temple of Blades is a famous church that believes that spiritual enlightenment can only be achieved through physical perfection. To this end, members train themselves obsessively in the arts of physical combat and become masters of a specific type of weapon. While traditionally the temple favored bladed weapons, it adopted mastery of other types of weapons and even unarmed combat within a century of its creation. Shrine of Monastery of The Revelry Basilica of Sanctuary Cult of the Accursed The Cult of the Accursed is a minor religion centered around the veneration of cursed objects, often associated with Jinix. Members of the church seek to afflict themselves with as many curses as possible, hoping to find unity with their cursed god, relieving her pain through their shared suffering. The Temple of Tranquility The Temple of Tranquility is a church where members consume various mind-effecting substances in an attempt to achieve a higher level of spiritual awareness. Critics of the church claim that it is little more than an opium den that promises its customers that they will find salvation through their own addiction, but The Empire protects its existence on the grounds that Ib are allowed the freedom to choose their own demise. The Sanctuary of Sin The Sanctuary of Sin is a small church that believes that primal sinful urges are intrinsic to the Ib psyche and that such impulses must be released in a controlled manner. To this end, the church creates Sin Sanctuaries, small havens where members may revel and fulfill their carnal desires, typically once every week or so, and then go about living their daily lives as normal. Antitheism Antitheism is a religion dedicated to hindering, thwarting, or otherwise exterminating gods. Ancestralism Ancestralism is a religion based around the worship and veneration of one's own ancestors. =